Qualcomm reveals tiny Linux-driven 5G NR chipset for IoT

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2021-05-22 14:30:04

Qualcomm unveiled a “315 5G IoT Modem-RF” chipset designed for industrial IoT. The tiny chipset runs Linux on a 7nm Cortex-A7 core and offers global 5G NR sub-6GHz stand-alone support along with 4G LTE. Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. announced its first cellular modem chipset designed specifically for Internet of Things applications. The industrial-focused Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem-RF System supports global 5G NR (New Radio) sub-6GHz bands, as well as 4G LTE. The chipset is sampling now and will be commercially available in the second half of the year. Qualcomm had some other 5G announcements this week, including the high-end, AI-enabled Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G Mobile Platform and the Qualcomm Snapdragon X65 and X62 5G M.2 Reference Designs.

In a briefing with reporters earlier this week, Viery Vanghi, VP of Product Management at Qualcomm Europe, mentioned that the 315 5G chipset uses 7nm fabrication and is built around the power-efficient Cortex-A7 architecture. Qualcomm later confirmed to us that the chipset runs Linux. Conceptual block diagram for Qualcomm 315 5G IoT Modem-RF (left) and security block diagram (click images to enlarge) Although intended primarily for private networks used on industrial sites, the technology also supports public 5G networks, leveraging network slicing or in isolation. The chipset operates in 5G stand-alone (SA) only mode, which refers to using 5G cells for both signaling and data transfer to enable private network operatoin. The chipset also offers the capability to switch to LTE as needed.